Posted by Annoyed on November 23, 2009 at 11:02:09:
Roe Reports, We Listen
WLS/Chicago host Roe Conn has been with the
Citadel News/Talker since then-owners ABC Radio
flipped the legendary Top 40 station to Talk radio in
1989. For two decades the Windy City native has
offered his unique brand of comment, comedy and
commentary on life and current events via his highly
rated afternoon drive show. For the past few months,
Conn’s also been developing and tweaking The Roe
Report, a daily news and commentary that airs not only
on his flagship station, but also on WABC/New York and KABC/Los
Angeles. Feeling the product is now ready for a national rollout, Conn
has teamed up with United Stations Radio Networks to syndicate the
daily feature nationwide. I recently talked to Conn about his new national
radio venture and also used the occasion to get his take on a couple of
issues in the news.
Tell us about the genesis of ‘The Roe Report.’
It actually first started when Paul Harvey died. ABC News Radio VP
Steve Jones called me and asked if I’d be interested in submitting a demo
for a feature that could be one of several the network was considering
offering as a replacement to affiliates. So I submitted a demo and about a
week later they called back and said they wanted to do it. With the help of
Steve and [WABC/New York PD] Laurie Cantillo we’ve been honing
the content and style of the feature over the last several months. I think
what we’ve created is something that can work not only on Talk radio, but
also Sports radio and even Classic Rock stations.
How did the relationship with USRN come about?
I met [USRN EVP/Programming] Andy Denemark and we really hit
it off. He totally got what I was trying to do with the feature, what my
‘voice’ is in the marketplace and what makes The Roe Report different
than a lot of what’s going on in Talk radio. He was very interested in
USRN picking up the feature. The people at USRN are a collection of
uniquely talented people. They’re not part of any station group and I
like that -- they’re solely content providers. These are people who truly
love radio and I really like that.
How would you describe ‘The Roe Report’ and what sets it
apart from other short-form news features out there?
It’s really about entertainment as much as it is about the news. That,
to me, is the essential core of it. It’s really the same approach and
feeling I have about doing Talk radio. People say its ‘News/Talk,’
but what it’s really about is entertaining people -- taking a story and
turning it around and inside out and viewing it through the prism of
an entertainer’s mind. I think The Roe Report does that by using popculture
entertainment as a vehicle for delivering a story. It’s pure radio
-- it’s got lots of music and sound bites -- it’s completely aural. I truly
love doing this feature.
Ultimately no one has, or could replace Paul Harvey, but do
you feel any sense that you are following a radio trail first
blazed by him?
Oh, definitely. It’s in the DNA of this program, especially since it was originally launched from that platform. Much of the initial concept of doing news with commentary is clearly a derivative of his broadcast. In
fact, originally in New York and Los Angeles it was developed to replace
Paul Harvey News and Comment -- some pretty big shoes to fill. Also,
for me, being from Chicago and being able to do the broadcast from here
-- as Paul Harvey did for all those years -- that’s pretty lofty stuff for a guy
like me. Clearly, what we have today is a different product but yes, I think
it’s fair to say that it comes from that lineage and I will forever be proud
that this product does come from that lineage.
Let’s switch gears a bit and ask a couple of current events
questions. As a guy who’s long supported causes to benefit
military and law enforcement, what’s your reaction to the recent
shootings at Ft. Hood and the government’s response so far?
There’s nothing more horrific to the military than fratricide. All of your
training is about camaraderie and taking care of your brother so to have
this crime committed by one of their own is the most sickening part of it.
I think too much has been made that no one tried to stop him. I am of the
perspective, knowing a little about how these situations tend to go, that he
was on the radar of the right people and that perhaps they were sitting on
him to see how high up the chain he could lead them to other bad guys. I
think the criticism that the government didn’t do enough to stop him is a
bit premature at this point. That may be how it turns out, but I’m going to
give them the benefit of the doubt on that for the moment.
As a Chicagoan, you know President Obama and many members
of the current administration from their years in Illinois. How do
you rate the job they’re doing so far?
I’ve met the President several times and I’ve never really agreed with
the push by some Talk radio hosts to characterize him as some kind of
Marxist, or radical 1960’s lefty. He was about five years old in the 1960’s,
so I don’t think he was really a part of all this stuff they try to connect him
to. However, he is a creature and a concoction of the Chicago political
environment which is similar to that weird old Uncle who lives in his
mom’s basement. He’s part of the family, but should never be seen in
public. That’s what Chicago politics is like. I will say that I thought
Barack Obama was a more pragmatic guy than he’s been as President and
I also don’t believe he’s shown himself to be a decisive leader and that’s
going to hurt him. Because when the book is written on his presidency I
think it will all come down to whether or not he is decisive -- a decision
maker -- and I don’t really think he is.